Enough With Passive Christianity

1John 4: 1 Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.

I have often heard the Christian response to blatant self-serving preaching or odd doctrines - the familiar; "who am I to judge?" Wave after wave of false doctrines continue to infiltrate American Christianity and the very people who should know better seemingly turn a blind eye to it. In avoiding the unsettling notion of confrontation we have allowed the Gospel of Jesus Christ to be reduced to a mockery. The sacrifice of Calvary has been translated into the most obscure or insulting things. Prosperity in the temporal riches of this world, gemstones from bogus angelic visitations, gold dust, holy laughter; the list just goes on and on. People pretending to be Apostles without wanting the sacrifice. People demanding to be called prophets. Yet there we sit, maybe mildly offended but not standing up for what is right and what is wrong. The passivity can be staggering. Yet how does the Bible instruct us to approach our walk?

Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed--not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence--continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose. Philippians 2: 12-13

The verb here is not passive. We are to "work" out our salvation, not sit in a fetal position until Jesus comes. And how are we to work it out? With fear and trembling. With an awesome appreciation for who God is, what He sacrificed for us, and the eternal destination of all mankind. And what of the great Apostle Paul? Having seen the third heaven and the throne room of God, Paul would evangelize the known world yet here is how he viewed the responsibility he had:

When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling. My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power. 1Corinthians 2: 1-5

For I resolved to know nothing except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. That is the same resolution we need to make within ourselves these days. Do not seek the eloquence of prosperity doctrine just Jesus Christ and Him crucified. Do not seek the superior wisdom of man selling you doctrine that doesn't exist in the Word of God just Jesus Christ and Him crucified. I asked my pastor once about salvation based messages versus ones that seemed more geared towards spiritual maturity. His response is that ANY message should be brought back to Calvary's cross. That is the Gospel beloved. Paul speaking in his first letter to the Church at Corinth:

For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel--not with words of human wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. 1Corinthians 1: 17

When we rely upon human wisdom we actually empty the cross of Christ of its power. The Gospel becomes sullied. Our key verse today warns about this and includes three important points. Working backwards in the verse, the reason John writes this is because he knows that many false prophets have gone out into the world. While this was a great cause for concern in John's day it is even more so today in western Christianity. God warns us especially in these the last days:

For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 2Timothy 4: 3-4

The time has indeed come. Sound doctrine has become watered down. People gather around them teachers to tell them what they want to hear. Everyone wants to believe that God wants them to be rich, which is why prosperity doctrine sells. Everyone wants to chase the "super-spiritual" experience, which is so many of the other false doctrines sell so easily. People want to believe they can continue living in rebellion and inherit eternal life, which is why alternative gospels sell so easily. Look at what the Lord says through the Prophet Jeremiah:

Then the LORD said to me, "Do not pray for the well-being of this people. Although they fast, I will not listen to their cry; though they offer burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them. Instead, I will destroy them with the sword, famine and plague." But I said, "Ah, Sovereign LORD, the prophets keep telling them, 'You will not see the sword or suffer famine. Indeed, I will give you lasting peace in this place.' "Then the LORD said to me, "The prophets are prophesying lies in my name. I have not sent them or appointed them or spoken to them. They are prophesying to you false visions, divinations, idolatries and the delusions of their own minds. Jeremiah 14: 11-14

Sowing your seed in return for blessing is not of God. To quote a famous singer, "The God I know isn't short of cash." Sowing is a matter of obedience, not a mechanism for turning Christ into an ATM. No beloved; we are compelled to test the spirits we encounter to ascertain whether they are of God or not.

That is the second point from the key verse today test the spirits. I have often heard well-intended Christians automatically assume that the apparent spiritual nature of something must be of God. Let us not forget that there are other spirits at work in the world.

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Ephesians 6:12

There are spiritual forces of evil at work against us. Do not ever lose sight of that. The fact that people fall down when touched by a preacher, roll on the floor in laughter, or pack an auditorium in the tens of thousands does not mean the spirit at work is from God. We must test everything:

Test everything 1Thessalonians 5: 21

This is one of the seven things listed as God's will for us in Christ Jesus. When Paul entered the city of Berea to preach the Gospel, the Bible tells us:

Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. Many of the Jews believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men. Acts 17: 11-12

The Bereans did not have a passive faith. They were eager to receive a Word from God and so should we but they did not just accept everything they heard at face value. They tested what they heard. And the result of this faithfulness to ensuring the validity of the teachings? Many believed. That is how the Gospel works.

The last point from the key verse is a reminder to us that we need to be wary of becoming naïve. Do not believe every spirit. Too many Christians are falling for false doctrines. Paul warned the leaders at Ephesus in his farewell to them:

I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears. Acts 20: 29-31

Men from within our own numbers will arise to draw people away from the truth. We have seen a smile and a self-help philosophy draw people away from the full Gospel. We have seen the pursuit of greed glorified and draw people away from the full Gospel. There are many who truly believe they are in relationship with God but who do not even know Him. Many who will spend their lives thinking they are working for the kingdom only to discover in horror on the last day that they never were:

"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!' Matthew 7: 21-23

These verses should be a frightening reminder to us that our salvation must be based upon a relationship, not a religion. It must be based upon being in covenant with God, not wisdom of man. The Book of Acts tells a story of the Seven Sons of Sceva. These were sons of a Jewish Chief Priest. Acts says that they went around driving evil spirits out of people. I am sure they looked the part. I am sure they knew how to play the part. I am sure that those who saw them must have thought that what they were doing was of God; after all they drove the demons out in "the name of Jesus Christ who Paul preaches." But invoking the name of Jesus is different than being in relationship with Him:

(One day) the evil spirit answered them, "Jesus I know, and I know about Paul, but who are you?" Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave them such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding. Acts 19: 15-16

Acts also tells the story of Simon the Sorcerer. The story tells that Simon amazed the crowds that witnessed his sorcery. He was very boastful and many people, both high and low, determined that he must have had some divine power. Acts goes on to say that he was baptized and became a follower of Phillip. He was part of the in crowd of the burgeoning Christian movement. Yet when he saw the Apostles impart the Holy Spirit by laying on of hands, he offered to buy the power for himself. This was the response of Peter:

Peter answered: "May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money! You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God. Repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord. Perhaps he will forgive you for having such a thought in your heart. For I see that you are full of bitterness and captive to sin." Acts 8: 20-23

The Seven Sons of Sceva and Simon the Sorcerer looked the part and sounded the part. Those who witnessed them probably believed in a divine role in what they were doing. But looks are deceiving and we are to not reflexively believe every spirit we see.

Instead we are to test the spirits against the Word of God, to make sure they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. Many people we see today coming in the name of Jesus Christ look the part and say all the right things. We must not passively allow them to continue to corrupt the Gospel. And do not let anyone fool you into thinking that somehow they have a corner on the "deeper things" of God:

But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted--you may well put up with it! 2Corinthians 11: 3-4 (NKJV)

Let us not put up with it anymore. Jesus Christ and Him crucified. That is all we need. Amen.

Reverend Anthony Wade July 3, 2010